Madden on Davis: He wasn’t a “pushover”

“Al Davis was the type of guy you don’t believe is going to die,” Madden told KCBS.

John Madden, broadcaster and former Raiders coach, said he’s still in shock over the death of Al Davis, who despite his tough reputation, was “the most loyal friend or person you could have.”

“Like I said when I introduced him the Hall of Fame, Al Davis isn’t for everyone,” he said on his KCBS podcast, The Daily Madden. “Everyone’s not going to say that Al is this or that, that he’s perfect and all these things. But if he’s your friend, you played for him, you coached for him, you were part of the NFL, he was that guy. There was no one that could be better at being that guy than Al Davis.”

Madden’s relationship with the Raiders owner spanned six decades. He was named head coach of the Raiders in 1969, when he was 32 — one of the youngest head coaches in league history — and helped Davis lead the Raiders to their first Super Bowl title.

Madden said that while Davis at times was the “contrarian” the world saw him as, there was more to him than met the eye.

“He stood up for what he believed and for what he thought was right, not just for him, but for other people,” he said. “He wasn’t going to be a pushover for anyone.”

It’s that fighter attitude that made his death so shocking, to both his fans and friends who knew him best, Madden said.

“Al Davis was the type of guy you don’t believe is going to die,” Madden said. “It’s Al Davis. When you hear it, it just doesn’t seep in.”